Grapevine: Celebrations in Kerpen and Maranello

Michael Schumacher's home fans, up before dawn to watch the Japanese Grand Prix on big screens, yelled and cheered in delight after the German driver won a record-breaking sixth world championship on Sunday.

The joyful scenes were repeated at Ferrari's base at Maranello in northern Italy where the race was shown on a screen in the central square.

Wearing Ferrari red and waving giant Ferrari flags, fans were packed sardine-style into a sports arena in Schumacher's Rhineland home town.

"It's just insane, just totally unbelievable," said Lukas Czarnetzki, 23, who cried tears of joy. "I've never seen anything like this. Schumi's the greatest of all time."

Schumacher, 34, left the working class town in 1994 and now lives in Switzerland but Kerpen has turned itself into a giant red-coloured shrine for its famous son and is known throughout Germany as "Schumi Town."

"If we couldn't be there in person to cheer him on being here with all the fans was the next best thing," said Peter Breuer, 45, a Kerpen carpenter.

Breuer arrived at 4 a.m. to watch the broadcast which was punctuated by defeaning cheers and fog horn blasts every time Schumacher moved up a place but also groans of nervous despair when he fell back.

Schumacher needed just an eighth place finish to win the title and got the one point he needed.

His victory won admiration from German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder who sent a telegram of congratulation.

"This is a unique achievement in this most demanding of sports," the German leader said.

No Sleep

Horst Korn, 50, said almost the whole town was up before dawn to watch the race.

"I couldn't sleep at all I was so nervous," said the gardener. "He's deeply embedded in all our hearts. He's the best and he's got the best team."

Some 30,000 visitors were jammed into Kerpen, a former mining town to take part in festivities and kart races on the streets in the centre of town. A parade of honking cars drove down main street shortly after the race.

"Kerpen and Michael Schumacher are linked inextricably together even though he lives in Switzerland now," said Kerpen mayor Ralf Valkysers. "The whole town is euphoric...we hope to get him here for a victory celebration within the next few days."

Schumacher grew up in Kerpen and his father runs the Michael Schumacher Kart Centre and museum on the edge of town.

Maranello's priest rang the church bells as the flag-waving crowd roared its approval at Barrichello's victory.

At least 8,000 fans, some from Germany, some from Italy's deep south, crammed into the village square and the champagne corks popped for Schumacher, Barrichello and Ferrari.

"Schumi you are a legend," read one banner in Italian and a fan, his hair dyed red the colour of Ferrari cars, said: "We have a great driver at Ferrari. He is unique."